Monthly Archives: February 2010

Design That’s as Easy as A-B-C

Leave a reply
When most people think of design elements, individual letters aren’t the first things that come to mind. Sure, selecting an appropriate typeface to complement the overall look or feel of a design is essential. But letters themselves (and the words they create) tend to be more the domain of literary artists.
If you stop to think about it, though, letters truly are visual elements. By themselves, each represents a particular sound or group of sounds. Grouped together, they represent various thoughts and ideas. Even more to the point, though, each letter has its own unique set of shapes. The S, for instance, has its sweeping curves, and the A has its crisp lines and angled peak.
With that in mind, can an entire design focus around a single letter form? Can an individual letter represent an entire idea on its own? Could the letter V, for instance, become a visual metaphor for anxiety? Or the letter X somehow display order? Take a look at the designs pictured here, and see for yourself. As you’ll see, each is based around a single letter form, which has been used to convey the desired emotion or idea.
So, the next time you find yourself facing a blank screen, with no idea how to proceed, remember these words… and, more importantly, the letters used to make them.

http://www.ParagonPress.net

318-868-3351

#1 in Shreveport, LA for printing, direct mail, design.

Eye-Stopping Headlines

Leave a reply
If you want to get prospective customers excited about doing business with your company, creating eye-stopping, mind-grabbing headlines is a great way to do it!
While the content of an advertisement is helpful for relaying information about your company’s products or services, it’s the headline that creates the initial relationship with the reader, and entices them to read about what your company has to offer. Here are six types of headlines that will boost inquiries about your company:
1.) The problem/solution headline. Readers are looking for products and services that will make their lives easier. By writing a headline that poses a problem many readers may have, and offers the solution your company can provide, you have created a situation that will most likely encourage the reader to take a look at the remainder of your advertisement.
2.) The historical event headline. If there is something newsworthy about your product or service, such as it is the world-premiere, or a limited-time offer, it can prove to be an effective draw.
3.) The testimonial. Providing a testimony from a person that has used your product or service encourages prospective customers to think, “If it worked for him, it can work for me, too!”
4.) Product claims. Include statistics and percentages in your headline to increase a product’s credibility. It is important to credit the source of the information you use because it gives your prospective customers a piece of mind about using your product. Even if the source is not well-known by the public, it should be included.
5.) Outrageous statements. The purpose of writing a headline is to provoke curiosity in your readers – making an outrageous statement relating to your product or service will almost force your readers to see what you have to say.
6.) Questions. Posing a question to your readers allows them to take an active role in your advertisement. The key is asking a question that most people will feel compelled to answer because it is relevant to their lives. People will naturally want to know what their answer to the question has to do with your products or services, and will continue reading your ad to discover what your company can do for them.
Headlines are a key component to successful advertising. Creating intriguing headlines will revolutionize your advertising and will have a great affect on your company’s success.

http://www.ParagonPress.net – #1 in Shreveport, LA for printing, direct mail, design – 318.868.3351

Developing the Ultimate Sales TIP

Leave a reply
What exactly is a TIP and how does it work? In his book “Getting the Second Appointment,” author Anthony Parinello describes this sales weapon as, “a tool that helps you to eliminate individuals and organizations that are likely to waste your time.” TIP stands for Template of Ideal Prospects, and it works to qualify your sales leads by comparing your current prospects to the qualities you see in your top current customers.
Here’s how you can create your own TIP sheet:
  • Take your company’s current customer list and study it very closely. You may need to break the list down into sub-groups, industries or niches in order to get the best understanding of what lies at the core of each company.
  • Ask yourself: What do my company’s best, biggest, and most profitable current customers have in common? Then write down your answers this question for each top current customers, being very detailed and deliberate about what you record.
  • Develop a worksheet that lists these common factors, along with a way to record whether your prospective customer meets that criteria (see sample TIP sheet below). The longer the list of common factors, the more accurately and completely you will be able to prequalify your prospects.
  • Once you have created your TIP sheet, you can begin filling it out for your prospects. In the beginning, it is best to only spend your energy pursuing the prospects that meet all of your criteria. Remember, the criteria you have established was gathered from your top current customers, and offers a reflection of the type of companies you want to do business with. Don’t compromise on what you deem to be most important.
  • If you have been wasting your time tracking down lukewarm leads and prospects, this TIP sheet is sure to give you a fresh perspective on landing hot sales.

Creating the Wrong Brochure

Leave a reply
To be successful, a brochure needs to be produced with a precise objective and a target reader in mind. It’s best to create the least elaborate brochure likely to achieve its objectives.
Deciding on Your Purpose
Brochures fall into two broad categories — those that introduce a new product or service to a likely customer and those that turn an already interested customer into a buyer.
Using Color
Full color is more costly but is justified if the product or service you are offering needs color to show its features. For example, a wallpaper brochure or a brochure of knitwear would not work effectively in anything other than full color. Another reason for using full color may be to compete head-on with a rival’s color brochure.
Using two or even three colors is a cheaper alternative to full color and can be quite effective, especially if part of the brochure is printed in a screened color that lightens the tone and gives the effect of another color.
A limited use of color can look more sophisticated than bold colors. You might also consider using full color in only part of a brochure, or you might try using colored paper — although that is quite tricky to do well.
10 Ways to Create the Wrong Brochure
  1. Being concerned with the looks, but forgetting the sales objective.
  2. Giving the printer poor artwork, but expecting excellent results.
  3. Forgetting to emphasize the unique selling proposition of your business.
  4. Omitting (or hiding) prices if they are critical to the reader’s decision-making.
  5. Printing too many brochures with details that date too quickly.
  6. Giving insufficient thought to how the brochure should best be distributed.
  7. Using text on the brochure that is too small to read easily.
  8. Including poor-quality or inappropriate illustrations.
  9. Allowing a fussy or complex design to distract from the key selling message.
  10. Forgetting to monitor the response (as with any other type of advertising).

http://www.ParagonPress.net – #1 in Shreveport, LA – Printing. Direct Mail. Design. – 318.868.3351

Powerful Business Cards

Leave a reply
Business cards may be small, but their impact is huge. A business card plays an important part in making a lasting impression upon those you do business with.
When choosing a business card, don’t be cheap. (If you’re on a limited budget, try to save elsewhere.) Experienced sales reps know how important it is to make a good impression on their prospects. They buy nice clothes, drive nice cars, and wine and dine prospects and clients – only to give them a 5¢ business card?!? Why not consider a 10¢, 15¢, or 20¢ business card that would really wow a customer and add to the overall good impression?
Feature your company name prominently, with your name and title smaller. Using your company logo is important, because it will help people associate your name with the product you are selling.
Don’t take up too much space listing all the ways you can be contacted. It’s best to list your phone, fax, and email address. Personal cell phone numbers and beeper numbers should be given to the client verbally, when necessary.
Full-color printing can add a dramatic impact to the look of your business card. If your budget doesn’t support full color, there are a lot of creative possibilities using two colors of ink combined with a third color of paper.
Don’t overlook the backside of your business card. It is a great place to add more sales and marketing information, your mission statement, a map and location, or photos of your products. It’s worth the time!
Business cards are one of the most important tools for business today. The time and effort you spend creating and printing excellent business cards will pay future dividends.
#1 in Shreveport, LA – Printing. Design. Mail.
318-868-3351

Create the Need

Leave a reply
John Patterson, known as the father of American salesmanship, is responsible for many of the modern sales practices used today. His work with the National Cash Register Company (NCR) changed the way salespeople think about marketing and selling their products.
In his book entitled The Patterson Principles of Selling, modern sales expert Jeffrey Gitomer unpacks some of Patterson’s most powerful tactics.
Patterson’s greatest sales accomplishment didn’t lie in selling cash registers, but in creating a demand for his product. He knew that sparking a desire would increase demand, and he focused his sales and marketing efforts on convincing consumers of the importance of obtaining a sales receipt. When consumers began to ask for a receipt from store clerks, the store managers felt obligated to purchase a cash register that would produce such receipts, and Patterson was poised to sell them one of his machines.
The same can be done in your business. Gitomer says in his book, “You must create a balance between the emotion to trigger the sale, and the logic to justify the purchase.” What is one thing your company could do to create a demand for your products or services?

Find Prospects Not Suspects

Leave a reply
Are you wasting your time, money, and enthusiasm on people who sincerely aren’t interested in what you have to offer?
Instead of looking for suspects who may have the capacity to buy your product or service some day down the road, start seeking prospects who are qualified to do so today. In other words, go where the money is.
Here are some tips on how to find prime, qualified targets today:
  • Build a strong client list of names, addresses, e-mails, and phone numbers by placing customers on a preferred client mailing and announcement list. After requesting to add them to your client list, be sure to follow through and make formal announcements once you compile your client list.
  • Use the Internet to search for other industries that have a similar target audience (those who are complementary versus competitive with your business). When you determine which other businesses would also sell to your client, contact them and offer to share or trade prospect names with them.
  • Don’t limit your prospecting simply to previous or current customers. A large number of high-quality prospects and leads can be turned into profitable clients through regular and strategic communication with them.
  • Avoid general advertisements, letters, or promotions. Always make sure that your offers refer to a specific product or service. This way, readers with strong interests can easily qualify themselves and take advantage of your offer.
  • Always focus your efforts on the markets, prospects, and activities that offer you the highest probability of a payoff. The less energy you waste on suspects, the more you have left for big, rewarding prospects.

Focus on the Buy

Leave a reply
Some marketing experts recommend that in creating a direct mail program, you should devote half your time to creating the reply form. Most clients are surprised, if not shocked, when they hear this very revealing rule. The rule is revealing because it suggests that most marketers spend too much effort on the sale and too little on the “buy.”
Think how often you have been virtually sold on something, but chose not to make the purchase because it was too hard to buy. The salesperson offered all sorts of options, for example, or made you worry about the value of an extended warranty. Perhaps they offered more complicated financing packages than you could intelligently choose among. The product was too hard to buy. Now, think of your opposite experiences. Something appealed to you a little, not necessarily a lot and the ease with which you could order, pay for, and receive the product ultimately led you to make the purchase.
Good marketing must focus on the buy. How clear is your offer? Can the prospects sample the service, thereby reducing their risk? How clear is the price? How easy is it to buy?
Save your customers some hassle and make your product easy to buy.

10 Ways to Create the Wrong Brochure

Leave a reply
To be successful, a brochure needs to be produced with a precise objective and a target reader in mind. It’s best to create the least elaborate brochure likely to achieve its objectives.
Deciding on Your Purpose
Brochures fall into two broad categories — those that introduce a new product or service to a likely customer and those that turn an already interested customer into a buyer.
Using Color
Full color is more costly but is justified if the product or service you are offering needs color to show its features. For example, a wallpaper brochure or a brochure of knitwear would not work effectively in anything other than full color. Another reason for using full color may be to compete head-on with a rival’s color brochure.
Using two or even three colors is a cheaper alternative to full color and can be quite effective, especially if part of the brochure is printed in a screened color that lightens the tone and gives the effect of another color.
A limited use of color can look more sophisticated than bold colors. You might also consider using full color in only part of a brochure, or you might try using colored paper — although that is quite tricky to do well.
10 Ways to Create the Wrong Brochure
  1. Being concerned with the looks, but forgetting the sales objective.
  2. Giving the printer poor artwork, but expecting excellent results.
  3. Forgetting to emphasize the unique selling proposition of your business.
  4. Omitting (or hiding) prices if they are critical to the reader’s decision-making.
  5. Printing too many brochures with details that date too quickly.
  6. Giving insufficient thought to how the brochure should best be distributed.
  7. Using text on the brochure that is too small to read easily.
  8. Including poor-quality or inappropriate illustrations.
  9. Allowing a fussy or complex design to distract from the key selling message.
  10. Forgetting to monitor the response (as with any other type of advertising).

Design Direct Mail That Sells

Leave a reply
If it sells, it is creative. This, in essence, is the first rule of direct mail design, according to legendary designer and author, David Ogilvy. But what sells?
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when designing your next direct mail marketing piece:
The basics are in your mailbox.
When you need inspiration, just go to your own personal direct mail idea vault… your mailbox! You probably receive tons of good direct mail each year. Set aside packages that catch your eye. The companies mailing these have spent thousands of dollars researching the best methods. Why not learn from their research?
Always try to beat your previous response rate.
Play around with the design before sending the mailing out again. See if minor changes make a significant difference in the response rate.
Send out different versions of your design to similar groups in your database, and test to see which one results in the most responses. Whatever you do, test it, and then test it again!
Use words that grab the reader’s attention.
Here is a recent list of “Words that Grab Attention,” produced by Starch INRA Hooper Research Worldwide:
Announcing / Discover / Easy / Exclusive / Free / Guarantee / Health / Help / Immediately / Introducing / Know / Learn / Love / Money / New / Now / Powerful / Profits / Protect / Proven / Results / Safe / Save / Secret(s) / Today / Trust / Understand / You
As you design the mailer, remember… have fun!

http://www.ParagonPress.net / Over 34 years, #1 in Shreveport, LA for print, design, mail.